Nail-cutting implement.



F. L. WHITE.

NAIL CUTTING IMPLEMENT.

APPLICATION mp0 APR. 15. 1914.

III M Witness Patented Dec. 5, 1916 FRANK L. WHITE, OF JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI.

' NAIL-CUTTING IMPLEMENT.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dec. 5, 1916.

Application filed April 15, 1914. Serial No. 832,065.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, FRANK L. WHITE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Jackson, in the county of Hinds and State of Mississippi, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Nail-Cutting Implements, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide an implement equally adapted for use in manicuring or pedicuring the nails of the fingers or toes, respectively, and which is constructed and arranged so that cutting blades may be readily renewed and wherein the cutting blades are so disposed that opposite cutting edges thereof may be employed.

A further object of the invention is to mount the blade in an improved form of, handle or holder so that the cutting edges will be operable substantially at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the handle or holder to provide for the most advantageous leverage, in use.-

A further object of the invention is to provide an improved form of blade holder in which guards project in such a manner as to provide gages to limit cutting action and prevent reduction of the length of the nails to the quick or beyond a predetermined extent.

A further novel feature of the invention consists in the cutting blade, as an article, the same being preferably manufactured in strips adapted to be transversely weakened for the purpose of severing or breaking off one blade from the strip.

Other features of novelty will be more fully described in connection with the accompanying drawing and will be more particularly pointed out and ascertained in and by the appended claims.

In the drawing :Figure 1 is a View in side elevation of a nail cutter embodying one form of my invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section thereof on line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a blade clamping element. Fig. 4 illustrates in side and end views the form of the blades when manufactured in strips.

Like characters of reference designate As illustrated, 1 designates a handle which.

may be formed of wood or any desired material and which is advantageously provided with a socket 2 and a closure cap 3 therefor. The socket 2 is adapted to contain a supply of blades so that new blades may be readily accessible for renewal purposes. On the opposite end of the handle, when the same is constructed of non-metallic material, I dispose a ferrule 'l, the outer end of which provides an abutting shoulder, the purpose of which will presently appear. A combined blade holder and guard is disposed on the operating end of the handle and the same comprises a rear body portion 5, having a bifurcated terminal forming guards or gage portions 6. The body portion 5 of the holder is provided with a threaded bore adapted to be turned on to a threaded shank 7. The shank 7 is provided with a shoulder 8 and an extension 9, which latter projects into the handle and is polygonal in cross section so as to prevent rotation in the shank. The body portion 5 of the blade holder is adapted to be turned on the threaded end 7 of the shank into the position shown in Fig. 2.

The guards 6 are provided with openings affording blade engaging portions 10 near their outer ends, the portions 10 being preferably shaped to conform with the contour of the blades. The openings in the guards 6 extend rearwardly and form parallel guide portions 11.

A blade clamping element, shown more fully in Fig. 3, consists of a base portion 12, adapted to fit between the guards 6, and opposite the base portion 12 said element is bifurcated at 13, and the bifurcated portions extend laterally of the base portion 12 and are shaped to fit the guide portions 11 of the openings in the guards 6 so that the bifurcated portions 13 will lie in the planes of the guards 6 and will not project appreciably inwardly or outwardly with respect to the guards 6. The outer ends of the bifurcations 13 are shaped to conform to the contour of the blades.

which is the thickest portion of the blade,

diminishes in thickness in opposite directons toward the cuttng edges 17.

One or more strips of blades will be disposed in the pocket 2 and when it is desired to insert a blade the cap 3 will be removed to withdraw the strip, and one end of the strip. will be inserted through openings in the guards 6 in a direction transverse with respect to the longitudinal axis of the implement. The body portion 5 will i be rotated on the shank 7 so as to separate the body portion from the ferrule l and thereby permit retraction of the blade clamping element. The blade clamping element may then be retracted until the shoulders 19' thereof engage the rear portions 20 of the guard openings. This will leave roomfor insertion of a blade between the bifurcated ends 13 and the holding portions 10, whereupon the base or body portion 5 will be turned relatively to the handle 1, or in other words, the handle 1 may be turned to force the body portion 5 against the ferrule 4L and thereby cause the end of the shank 7 to engage the base portion 12, of the blade clamping element and force the rounded outer bifurcated ends of said element into engagement with the inner face of the blade. After the blade is clamped in place as shown in Fig. 2, a slight bend in opposite directions imparted to the strip will sever the clamped blade from the strip and then the implement will be ready for use.

It will be seen that the cutting edges project at right angles to the longitudinal axis of the implement and that the guards 6 are sufficiently spaced apart to permit of a relatively considerable exposure of the cutting edges of the blades between said guards, in fact, the cutting edges will be exposed substantially throughout their length excepting for the slight thickness of the guards which close the end portions of the cutting edges.

The projection of the guards outwardly from the blade, as clearly seen in Fig. 2, provides for engagement of one or other of the guards with the tuft of the fingers or toes so as to form a gage limiting the depth of the cut of the nail.

The projecting guard ends may be utilized to clean the nails, while cutting the same, and they may be also utilized to retract projecting cuticle at the base of the nail. It will also be seen that by disposing the handle 1 at right angles to the finger instead of in substantially longitudinal alinement therewith, the knife edge of the blade can be employed to scrape and finish off the manicured nails.

\Vhile I have herein shown and described one. specific form of my invention, I do not wish to be limited thereto, except for such limitations as the claims may import.

I claim I 1. A nail cutting implement of the character described, comprising in combination, a

handle, a pair of guards mounted on said handle and spaced apart from eachother and provided with apertures, a knife blade having its ends disposed in said apertures and provided with cutting edges disposed at right angles to the planes of said guards and extending therebetween, and means carried by the handle for forcing said blades into anchored engagement with said openings, substantially as described.

2. A nail cutting implement of the character described, comprising in combination, a

blade holder having bifurcated portions provided with blade holding openings therein disposed inwardly of the end and side margins of said bifurcated portions, a blade spanning the space between said bifurcated portions and having its ends disposed in said openings and provided with oppositely disposed cutting edges, and means disposed in the openings of said bifurcated portions and lying in the planes of said portions for clamping said blade in position, substantially as described.

3. A nail cutting implement of the character'described, comprising in combination, a handle having a threaded shank, a blade holder rotatable on said shank and provided with bifurcated portions having blade receiving openings, Within the embrasure thereof, a blade in said openings, and a bifurcated blade clamping element having bifurcated portions extending into the openings in the holder portions and adapted for longitudinal displacement to grip or release the blade upon rotative adjustment of said holder with respect to said handle, substantially as described.

4. A nail cutting implement of-the character described, comprising in combination, a bifurcated blade holder having blade receiving portions and guard ends projecting longitudinally and laterally beyond said blade receiving portions, a blade in said portions, and means for clamping the blade in place in said portions, substantially as described.

5. A nail: cutting implement, including a handle, a blade holder thereon comprising said guards and clamping block, and means a body bifurcated to provide a pair of for moving said block into clamped position. 1. spaced apart guards having complementally In testimony whereof I aifix my signature formed openings therein, a clamping block in presence of two Witnesses.

5 movable in said openings relative to said FRANK L. WHITE.

body, spaced apart arms in said clamping l/Vitnesses: block providing jaws, a blade having its W. C. COLLINS, respective extremities engageable by the R. H. FORD.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the. Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G. 

